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Elaine Wong

The City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong (CCOHK) has never been one to stick to the classical canon. After Wild (2022) and Shark Symphony (2024), the orchestra continues its run of original family musicals with Space Fantasy, created by founder and artistic director Leanne Nicholls.
The premiere took a bold, if slightly wobbly, leap into the cosmos. And while the narrative didn’t always land, the sheer visual spectacle was hard to resist.
The story is simple enough: 10-year-old Astrid, practising a Bach partita for her school competition, encounters Fluto, an alien from Pluto who has come to Earth in search of music. Their meeting sparks a fantastical journey to outer space, where they crash a talent show called “Stars of the Cosmos”.
The plot, as one might forgive for a children’s piece, is more of a clothesline for spectacle than a tightly woven narrative. Act II’s talent-show format felt like a convenient device to showcase the array of international guest artists, and the story occasionally defies logic – how, for instance, does an alien invasion lead to an intergalactic talent show with no clear stakes? But for a show aimed at three-year-olds and up, perhaps we’re not meant to overthink it.

What Space Fantasy lacked in narrative coherence, it compensated for in visual splendour. After setting up the premise in Act I with a few sweet domestic scenes, Act II exploded into a full-scale revue. Each planet took a turn in the spotlight, with circus performers and musicians vying for the audience’s attention.
The undisputed star of the night was Gabor Vosteen (a German performer also known as The Fluteman), who plays Fluto, a mute alien who communicates solely through his recorder. Vosteen’s Act II classical music medley was a breathtaking display of showmanship: he played five recorders simultaneously (including using his nostrils!), juggled, performed magic tricks, all while tooting Mozart and Rimsky-Korsakov flawlessly. He is a virtuoso and comedian rolled into one.
The other planetary acts were equally dazzling. Kazuho Monster, a popping dancer from Japan, emerged as an unexpected highlight. His moonwalking and hypnotic body control – popping is a style that requires sudden tensing and releasing of muscles – drew cheers from the crowd.
The four-arm juggler ON created uncanny illusions as Uranus, while Grace Hoop’s luminous hoop-spinning against a dark stage, representing the rings of Saturn, was mesmerising.
The costumes (Twinny Cheng) and make-up and hair design (Margo Lau and Betty Wan) were central to the visual feast, dressing each planet in a distinct, detailed palette: Neptune in shimmering blues, Mercury with glowing orange goggles, and the Security Guard in an eccentric, yellow headpiece.

And yet, for a production led by an orchestra, the music sometimes seemed to be accompanying rather than driving the action. The score, by Emmy-nominated screen composer Luna Pan, was pleasant and atmospheric, with humming synths and wacky electronic textures. But its film-music quality, while effective, was more reminiscent of a soundtrack than a theatrical score. Whether this was a deliberate choice by Nicholls or simply a reflection of Pan’s background, it left the orchestra in a supporting role rather than at the centre of the spectacle.
Space Fantasy also struggled to balance its other ambitions. The theremin, an instrument played without physical contact, was one of the most eagerly anticipated elements of the show – its eerie sound inextricably linked to sci-fi and the unknown. But it was regrettably underused. Played by Miles Brown, a leading thereminist from Australia, the instrument appeared in only two of the 18 tracks.
The first theremin solo in Act I’s “Astrid Dreams” wasn’t even obvious, as the instrument was not shown on stage. Its otherworldly tone, so perfect for the theme, was a missed opportunity for greater integration as an anchor.
Meanwhile, young Adeline Wong, as Astrid, showed remarkable accomplishment playing the harp and singing, but as a 10-year-old, naturally lacked the expressive range to match Vosteen’s magnetic presence.

Despite these quibbles, Space Fantasy created a palpable warmth in the auditorium. Children squealed in delight at Fluto’s antics, parents chuckled along and the musicians seemed to be having just as much fun as the audience.
No doubt, as the new venue partner of Tsuen Wan Town Hall, CCOHK will go full speed ahead with its eclectic, risk-taking programming. Space Fantasy offers an imperfect but promising glimpse of the wonders to come.
Space Fantasy, City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong, Tsuen Wan Town Hall Auditorium. Reviewed: August 29.


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Miles Brown plays the theremin during the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong’s original family musical Space Fantasy at Tseun Wan Town Hall. Photo: courtesy of CCOHK

Recorder virtuoso Gabor Vosteen (right) and 10-year-old harpist and actress Adeline Wong perform during a scene in Space Fantasy. Photo: courtesy of CCOHK

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Jessica Peralta (left) and Adeline Wong perform during a scene from Space Fantasy. Photo: courtesy of CCOHK

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Luna Shaw (left) and Kearen Pang in a scene from A Taste of Home. Photo: courtesy of Windmill Grass Theatre

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What the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong’s original family musical lacked in narrative coherence, it compensated for in visual splendour


What the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong’s original family musical lacked in narrative coherence, it compensated for in visual splendour.


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Hong Kong

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Classical music

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.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}What the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong’s original family musical lacked in narrative coherence, it compensated for in visual splendour

What the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong’s original family musical lacked in narrative coherence, it compensated for in visual splendour